Saiyan Castaway
by MorePlus
Summary: For Alejandro "Alex" Matias, life just got a whole lot more complicated. Being the last Saiyan in the Universe will do that to any preteen. Added to the fact he's experiencing these changes, will he be the hero his heritage indicates. Find out inside. Rated M just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

Saiyan Castaway

By MorePlus

"" Dialogue

'' Thoughts

" _Italics"_ other language

 **Authors Note: Hi all! This is my very first fanfiction and crossover for this fandom, Young Justice. I've been reading a lot of these fanfictions for years and I decided to give it a try with a story of my own. This will be a crossover with Dragon Ball Z, though the main Saiyan character will be an OC. I have decided to tweak the traditional way DBZ-Young Justice Crossovers are done in that they feature the canon characters from DBZ adapting to the world of Young Justice, and I haven't seen nearly enough good OC stories. Please note that the Saiyans/DBZ lore in this fanfiction is modified a little for creative license, though some main plot points will be maintained (like the destruction of Planet Vegeta and some of the enemies) This chapter is mostly just introduction. I do not own Young Justice nor Dragon Ball Z, and only own my OCs.**

Chapter Begin

He woke up with a start. Panting, eyes examining every inch of the room for the danger he had just extirpated himself from, he took stock of his surroundings. Orange tinted walls with a few of the coats of paint unraveling, myriad posters of his favorite bands, a grade school mosaic project of St. Luke he made for his surgeon father staring back at him, he immediately recognized his surroundings as his room: he was in no danger. Quickly composing himself, he swept a hand through his matted hair and breathed a sigh: another nightmare.

It had started the way they always start, him in a strange hall, walking down a corridor of some strange steel. Being confronted by a man with some sort of device on his left eye and unnaturally long, onyx black hair and a strange attire, some type of armor. This is where it got really strange, however, for at that point the man would exclaim something in a language he could not remember when he invariably woke up, and aim his hand from which a glowing beam of light emitted towards him. Right before his dreamy demise, he would wake up with a start just as he had moments ago.

'Third time this week...' Alejandro "Alex" Matías Cabrera sighed, recomposing himself on the bed and getting to his feet. He spared a glance at the alarm clock on his nightstand, the goofy stylized Batman symbol signaling to the eleven-year-old sixth grader that it was a quarter past five AM: he had school in three hours. Knowing he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, he made his way down the hall from his room to the living room of the three bedroom apartment he shared with his family in Gotham City, dragging his feet ever so slowly across the linoleum floor. 'Mom and Dad are gonna be worried sick. First these _changes_ and now nightmares, he thought to himself.'

When he arrived at the kitchen, he saw his forty-nine-year-old mother dressed in her hospital scrubs, making an omelete for herself, her prematurely gray hair put up in a professional ponytail. _So today she's teaching residents,_ surmised Alex. She didn't notice him until he sat down, and when she looked at him from her cooking she audibly sighed.

"Another nightmare, son _?"_ , she asked pointedly, a slight accent dotting her words, noticing his bloodshot eyes for the first time. "Is it that recurrent one again? Maybe I should call Dr. Vogel, maybe he can prescribe something…"

"No! No, mom, I'm fine, I don't need any more medication, honest." Alex had already been prescribed medicine for his attention deficit disorder, and the process leading up to his diagnosis didn't sit well with him at all. He had been especially keen on avoiding any more of the aforementioned psychiatrist, Dr. Vogel's, attention.

"I'm just…I just need to figure out why I'm having these dreams" he finished weakly, eyeing the leftover omelete that was left over. Seeing his gaze on the food, his mother served him some.

"Thanks", he mumbled, taking a tentative bite. It may have been the after-effects of the nightmare, but it tasted bland to him.

"So here's an idea Alex. Your father and I were thinking that maybe this weekend we should go up to the Gotham mountains, you know, where we keep the camping house. Maybe a change of scenery will do you some good".

Alex groaned. He did not think he should be camping, what with the other issues hounding him at school. Namely, _those_ issues. He decided to voice his disapproval with the aforementioned plan.

"Mom it's not just the nightmares…we still haven't talked about what happened last week at school.

His mother's grin vanished. In all of her life, Eugenia (Gene as she was called by her colleagues) Cabrera had never once believed she would be faced with such a difficult situation in her life. Ever since becoming an attending urologist at Gotham University Hospital since moving from Puerto Rico in the late 1980s, she had seen her fair share of horrible, dehumanizing, and frankly _weird_ things. Shooting victims, drug addicts, all manner of medical emergencies paled in comparison to what happened last week to her son at Gotham North Middle School. That event being the catalyst for her son's current condition, she was also worried that an issue in his past would come up. Last week, when Alex was locked into his locker by one of his many bullies (they had taken a habit of picking on him due to him excelling in both sports-he was deemed to be a natural athlete by his gym coach-though Alex doesn't remember himself actively participating in physical activity to explain his fitness-and academics) he had waited for hours until one of the teachers tried to get him out. He doesn't remember much about what happened afterwards, but he distinctly remembers him being so angry, that when he looked at the shaking locker door, the next thing he knew he felt a burning sensation in his eyes and the lock had melted. The teacher hadn't noticed until after the fact when he saw the oozing metal, but needless to say, when word got out to his parents, he was immediately picked up from school, driven home, and treated to two and a half hours of his parents muffled arguments about "that day" and his past.

"Honey", said his mom, considering whether to admit that she _did know_ why that had happened to him-finally relenting, "you need to understand that whatever happens, you are and will always be our son", she finished as she cupped his cheek. Alex was thoroughly confused-he had expected his mother to bat away the issue like she and his father had done for the past week, but this was an unexpected change in demeanor. He decided to play along with this change, hoping to get answers.

"I've talked with your father, and we might know why everything-the _issues_ , the nightmares-maybe happening to you. We decided it would be better to explain in the cabin. Trust us, you'll understand why. But it has to be this weekend, alright?".

Alex was at a loss for words. Finally, he would get answers. Answers to why the onyx-haired man was haunting his dreams, why he had _melted_ the locks off of his lockers, why he had been physically fit enough to excel in his soccer team the first time he set foot on a field without a single day of practice. All these questions now had a tentative answer, but he would have to wait two more days to find out. It was so tantalizing it almost _hurt_.

"Alright Mom…I'll wait until then, he sighed. He didn't like it, but if he had to wait to get his answers, he would. He had waited all his life with questions, he could wait two more days.

His mother smiled at him, letting go of his cheek. She checked the time, saw that it was 6:00 AM, and immediately grabbed her keys to go to work. Duty called at Gotham University Hospital. "I promise, we'll explain everything dear. Get ready for school, and say goodbye to your father!", she exclaimed as she left.

As Alex went to his father's room to say good bye and go to the bus stop, he couldn't help but focus on his dozing dad's parting words as he left for the street corner to wait for the bus.

"Goodbye.. _M'ijo"_

His son. For the first time in Alex Matias's life, an unexpected feeling of unease racked him at the notion. Just what did his parents have planned to tell him?

Chapter End

"

 **Constructive criticism welcomed!**


	2. Chapter 2

Saiyan Castaway

By MorePlus

"" Dialogue

'' Thoughts

" _Italics"_ other language

 **Authors Note: Here's the second chapter, this one will be longer as its mostly exposition about Alex's past. This part of the story takes place in September of 2007, right after the formation of the Justice League. There will be a time skip to 2010, when the main series begins. Other than that, thanks for the follows! Sorry for the wait, I was away from home on an internship and the start of the new college semester got in the way of me continuing for a bit, but now I'm back and I should be updating more regularly.**

September 28, 2007

The road trip up to the mountains on the outskirts of Gotham was just as he expected it, mostly silent. Alex's attempt to get a hint of what his parents had in store for him when they got to their weekend getaway were met with steadfast deflection from them. Resigning himself to watching the city outskirts give way to forested land, he waited patiently for the hour-long car ride to end so he could have his questions answered. He hadn't had any more "incidents" since three days ago when he first brought it up with his mom, but he didn't really know what triggered them in the first place. He had a nagging feeling it had to do with his emotions, but then again he had been bullied before the incident without any weird energy coming out of his eyes. The reason why he was manifesting these abilities now was lost to him. He had heard on the news that there _were_ people with abilities like the ones he experienced. 'I think they referred to them as _metahumans_ ', Alex thought. Anyway, it looks like a group of metahumans led by Gotham's Batman had recently stopped an alien invasion from decimating Earth about a month ago, and had formed a group called the Justice League to counteract any future extraterrestrial incursion.

'Could I be like them perhaps? Superman does have heat vision, but there's still a huge blank as to how I'm manifesting these abilities', Alex mused. That also wouldn't explain the recurring nightmare with that strange, black-haired man. He resigned himself to wait for his parent's explanation as to his origins. His thoughts were interrupted when his dad brought the car next to the cabin.

"We're here.", Dr. Manuel Matías unenthusiastically announced. After coming home three days ago to his wife's request to answer the reason for their son's strange behavior, it had taken him all of the following sleepless night to convince himself that the time had come to tell the truth to their son, hence the trip to the Gotham woods, were his son's questions could be answered. In all his years as surgeon at Gotham University Hospital, he had seen and experienced enough death and hardship within the lives of other people. He never considered, however, that his son would ever have hardship thrown over his shoulders like he was about to by revealing his origins. But he supposed the time would have come eventually come clean about it all, if only to provide the answers he knew his son would eventually want to find. He exited the car and waited for his family to follow him up to the cabin.

The cabin itself was rather old and had clearly seen better days. It consisted of an antiquated, smoked hickory wooden structure next to a perpetually locked storage shed, nothing more, nothing less. A site for a campfire laid in the back, the brown presence of freshly cut firewood a stark contrast to the ashen outer layer surrounding the fire pit. It had been his parents' idea to buy the thing from the previous owner when they moved to the mainland US for their jobs, apparently wanting to, quote, "get away from the vile influence of Gotham" every once in a while. It was no secret that the city were they resided wasn't his parent's most favorite place in the world, what with all of the crime and the unfortunate tendency of Batman's Rogues gallery to use the place as their own little playground. If it wasn't the Joker threatening the city square with his gas it was another one of the Dark Knight's crazies threatening to tear the whole place down every week. Dr. Matías was personally no fan of the Caped Crusader, or any other vigilante for that matter, but he supposed their antics were the price to pay if the recent tendency of supervillains and extra-terrestials to make Gotham and cities like it their own little nesting grounds continued. He also could not bring himself to leave his position at Gotham University Hospital after fifteen long years of preparing the nation's best and brightest medical professionals. He was that proud of his work. So he and his family would continue living in Gotham, and have this place out in the woods as their escape valve.

'Now comes the hard part', Dr. Matías thought as he and his family made their way to the door. He motioned them inside and set their things down. He observed them for a moment. His wife was sitting down, nervously flickering her gaze between her son and her husband, her eyes asking not to be the first one to break the news they knew they had to break to Alex. Alex himself was looking between them, impatiently frowning at the lack of the promised explanation as to the fact he had nearly melted his locker off his hinges three days ago. Even he had his limits. After a long time, Alex's father pinched the bridge of his nose, closed his eyes, and said the following:

"What I'm about to tell you must stay between us, and only us, do you understand? Alex, I need you to promise me that before I tell you."

Alex frowned, what could be so secretive about himself that he had to be sworn to secrecy, like they were part of some cult or something. Deciding his need to get answers outweighed his apprehension at his father's uncharacteristic and sudden secretive flair, he nodded his head, prompting his father to continue.

"It happened twelve years ago, right here in these very woods. We had been living in the mainland for about five years then, and had just earned enough money to buy this place.", he said, gesturing to their rural and wooden enclave. "It was around that time that Batman first appeared in Gotham. I remember it clearly, I had just started as an Attending at Gotham U and can remember the first batch of criminals brought in that looked like they had been beaten almost to death. Much more violent than usual" He paused for a moment, the memories of the early years not quite losing their hold over him. After a moment, he continued:

"Needless to say, your mother and I were terrified about what was going on. After a while the constant vigilante activity and the associated crime got to our nerves. A friend recommended we look into this area to buy property to, and I quote, 'get away from this lunatic town every now and then' and we looked, and found this place." He sighed and looked at Alex in a pensive manner, apparently having gotten through the easy part of his explanation first. After noticing his son not breaking his rapt attention to his introductory explanation, he continued:

"This is where it gets hard. Alex, back then, we didn't have Superman or Martian Manhunter or any of the otherworldly beings we have now running around. Needless to say, when you came into our lives, the shock was very real."

"What shock? What are you talking about, Dad?", asked Alex, a little reluctant to find out where this conversation was going. Pushing the gnawing feeling that what he was about to hear and see would indelibly change his life forever, he indicated for his father to continue.

"Perhaps it would be best if we show you.", Alex's father concluded. Moving towards the door, he beckoned his son and his wife to follow him outside towards the perpetually locked shed. It had started raining when they began their conversation and the ground had gotten muddy in the interim. Thunder could also be heard miles away, and it took Dr. Matías a few minutes of fiddling with the locked door to get it open. When they got inside, Alex could only think about the cold late September rain seeping into his skin, enough that he didn't notice his father hesitating over the covered thing in the middle of the room. After what seemed like an eternity of his father's reluctance, he finally addressed Alex.

"We found you in this.", Dr. Matías told his son. Alex was about to ask what exactly _this_ was when his father removed the tarp covering the object in the middle of the room. Alex was immediately floored. He couldn't process anything for the next few minutes. When he recovered slightly from the sheer shock, he gazed upon the round metallic object with a violet center in the room with incredulity. Taking many deep breaths to control himself, he tore his gaze from it and addressed both of his parents in a strained whisper:

"Is that…what I think it is?", he asked them. Nodding his head, Alex's father came over and put his arm around his son's shoulder while his mother took his hand. After a few moments of them comforting their son, Alex asked the question in the back of his mind:

"H-how…is this possible? I mean, a spaceship? An honest to God spaceship!? Does that mean I'm not-not from Earth? An E.T.?"

"It happened twelve years ago. We were out in these very woods enjoying the first night out in the cabin when we saw what we thought was a meteor crash into a clearing a few miles to the east. We investigated the debris, and we were just as shocked as you were at seeing a _spaceship_ where a meteor would have been. We were even more shocked when we found a _baby_ inside the damn thing. It looked like you were put there deliberately. Anyway, the short story is that we got you out and raised you as our own. The long story would be explained inside the spaceship itself." Alex's father then produced a cylindrical tube made of metal, and gave it to his son. "We found that with you inside. I took it to a metallurgist at Gotham U, and whatever its made of doesn't even exist on this planet." Alex took the object between his fingers, and looked at it. On the top side of it was an engraving of what appeared to be the head of a trident over a double edged hook, a sort of insignia.

'Maybe it's the flag of my home-world', Alex thought. _Homeworld._ That word in that sentence is not something Alejandro Matías would ever think of uttering about any other planet besides Earth. His mind was going a mile a minute, processing the incredible amount of shocking revelations he had just been saddled with by his parents.

'My parents?', he thought, observing his parents for a moment. His "father's" eyes were flickering uncomfortably between the space pod and his adopted son waiting with baited breath his reaction, while his "mother" had her head down, ashamed of the secret that had been eating at her life as a parent for the last twelve years. It appeared to Alex they had aged ten years between the moment they revealed the terrifying secret and the moment they gave him the engraved object. He suddenly remembered his mother's words from three days earlier: _"you need to understand that whatever happens, you are and will always be our son"._ He decided he would take those words to heart, even if his mind's questions were bearing down on him at light speed. 'Like that ship I came in', Alex thought sarcastically, but quickly shut down his rebellious mind's attitude. There would be time for snark later.

"Does this", Alex began, pointing at the engraved object, "do anything? Is it some type of clue as to my origins?"

"My metallurgist friend thinks it's some type of key.", answered his father. "Seeing as how it's the perfect size to fit in that slot." He promptly pointed to a cylindrical hole just the right size for the object in Alex's hand to go through. Cautiously, Alex approached the pod slowly and ran his fingers over the contours of the key slot. Quashing all momentary fear, he inserted the object inside the slot, and the effect was immediate: the pod lit up in a spectacular shade of violet as it began to open.

"That didn't happen when I tried it.", Dr. Matías stated, dumbfounded. With a steaming hiss, the doors opened, revealing an otherworldly looking cockpit with controls in a language undecipherable to Alex's bilingual mind. Observing the veritable light show of blinking luminescence, Alex was drawn immediately to what appeared to be the lock pad for a separate compartment of the ship, which had a hand print indentation. Steeling his nerves, he gathered the courage to place his hand on the indentation. As the compartment behind the indentation collapsed upon itself to reveal its contents, Alex Matías would forever look back at this moment as the one that changed his life forever.

 **Please rate comment and subscribe!**

"


	3. Chapter 3: A Close Encounter

Saiyan Castaway

By MorePlus

"" Dialogue

'' Thoughts

" _Italics"_ other language

' _Italics'_ -thoughts in other language

 **Author's Note: I'm glad this story has received quite a bit of a following since I first posted it this summer, I'm sure this number will continue to grow. To answer TheOneGuyUpstair's review, this chapter will elucidate a bit on why Alex was sent to Earth from Planet Vegeta in the first place, particularly on the fact it doesn't appear to be conquest. If I didn't make this clear before (and I apologize if I didn't) I amalgamated the Young Justice Earth 16 universe with the DBZ Universe in order to make this story. As such they are part of one continuity, and obviously elements of the original Saiyan lore (Goku being sent to conquer Earth) don't occur here, though that is because I changed a few things with the amalgamation to make this joint universe work, if that makes sense. Alex not having a tail is something that will be explained along those lines. Sorry for the long wait, I've been busy with college and writer's block. Anyway, without further ado here's chapter three.**

Chapter 3:

What Alex was facing could only be rationally described as _weird._ More weird than the fact that it was just revealed to him, in the span of half an hour, that he was an extraterrestrial being who had been rescued from a pod that came from outer space. No, what confronted him right now in the compartment of the violet-grey space pod he was in front of was even more unsettling. Quickly recovering from his shock, and sparing a look at his _adoptive_ parents (that sure felt weird to think) in the corner of the cabin, he spared a glance at the three objects inside the DNA encoded compartment.

The first object appeared to be a set of armor, black in color, with its most distinguishing features being the light green armor plating reminiscent of a turtle's shell in the center and shoulders and the thighs. The armor set continued, upon Alex's closer examination, into a skin tight black leotard. What called Alex's attention the most, however, were two things: the fact that the shirt portion formed into a mask that would have covered the lower portion of the wearer's face perfectly, and the fact that, upon closer inspection, the pants had a hole in the back right above were a human's coxis would sit. 'Weird', thought Alex, though he was more confused by the second object.

The first thing Alex thought of when he looked at the green tinted contraption was that it looked like a visor: indeed, the object looked like one half of a set of sunglasses that, when worn, would have covered the leftmost portion of the wearer's eyes. Taking the visor into his hands, Alex was startled when, accidentally pressing a hidden button, it lit up in a flash foreign symbols and a language he had never heard before. From what he gathered it was a very glottal language. The green visor then began emitting a series of foreign symbols in what Alex presumed to be the written form of the language he had just heard: it appeared to be a list of some kind, though Alex could not for the life of him even begin to decipher it.

The last object was the most interesting of all: a rectangular box that emitted a violet light from a hand shaped opening. ' _Another lock? What could be in this one?'_ thought Alex. Sparing his second glance at his parents, they encouraged him to put his hand on the indent. "Here goes nothing." Alex muttered, placing his hand on the indent, intent on deciphering the box's secrets. Years later, he would recall never having such a violently surreal and terrifying experience occur to him in the following years. All at once, the entirety of the knowledge of the strange language contained within the visor forced itself upon his subconscious like the poison of a predator coursing through its fallen prey. All the language's images, sounds, words, syllables, books, and mathematical formulas flitted in front of his mind's eye, intent on ingratiating themselves forever in his psyche. He internalized the monologue the box was showing him in his subconscious, simultaneously analyzing all forms of emotion and rationality in an entirely new language, learning the rules, the structural forms, the sounds, the emotion of forming every sentence. The box's monologue seemed like it would go on for eternity, but just as quickly as it began it stopped. Left sprawling upon the dingy floor, Alex's descent towards it was interrupted by the arms of his parents hoisting him up by his arms.

"What happened?! Did that thing hurt you?!" asked his mother frantically. Turning to her husband, still holding on to Alex, she addressed her husband. _''Manuel_ , _maybe we should call it for today, that looked dangerous!". "Maybe you're right Eugenia",_ added his father. Hearing their concerns, Alex quickly shook his head and stood up. _"I'm fine!"_ he said, unsurely. "I just…got overwhelmed is all." He added. "What did you see?" inquired his adoptive father. "I saw…everything. I think this thing just taught me whatever language that visor was in." His adoptive parent's eyebrows quirked in a collective gesture of surprise, but considering the totality of the events that could be considered weird occurring that night, they didn't dwell on it too long. Quickly shaking off the dizziness, Alex's gaze was drawn to the fact the strange box had opened a compartment within itself to reveal a glowing button. At first thinking it would be another transcendental experience, his thoughts were interrupted when a voice invaded his mind, seemingly from the box itself, speaking to him. _'Press the device to know the truth.'_ Startled by the sudden voice, he confirmed it came from the box when he saw that he and his parents were still the only people in the room. Alex resigned himself _._ 'Here we go'.

Pressing the button, Alex did not have time to be startled when a violet light shot forth from the device and set himself on his forehead. Becoming completely immobile, he did not perceive his parents trying to get his attention when the entire room shifted into an otherworldly metallic room with the same shades of grey and violet the space pod was colored in. Momentarily startled, he marveled at the sleek metallic plating of wherever he was illuminated by the violet luminescence of the place's lighting. _'This is just like one of my sci-fi novels'_ , Alex mused, interested in the seemingly extraterrestrial architecture of the room he was in. He did not have time to further contemplate his surroundings when his attention was finally brought to the center of the room, where for the first time he noticed a man standing in the center, surrounded by all sorts of monitors and technology. The man was dressed in armor similar to the one he found on the ship, with the turtle shell design. Quickly withdrawing his gaze from his surroundings, Alex addressed the strange man in the room.

"W-who, are you?", asked Alex, the question leaving his lips. The man withdrew his gaze from a non-descript monitor and looked at Alex for the first time. Alex absentmindedly noticed for the first time the man's eyes were the exact same shade of onyx black as his own.

"I know this will sound like quite the tale, young man, but I…am your father. It's good to see you all grown up, Raddis," the man stated. Alex was floored. Two days ago he had accepted the fact that Manuel Matías was not his biological father, but only after a prolonged attempt at trying to wake himself up from whatever dream he had been put under. Hearing this man declare himself his biological father brought home the fact that he was, in fact, not from Earth. He opened and closed his mouth several times before he overcame his hesitation and asked a series of follow up questions, all in quick succession: "How? What is going on here? Where do I come from? _What_ are we? _What_ did you just call me now?"

His recently revealed father put up a hand to staunch the flow of questions. "Perhaps it would be best if I began from the beginning". Seeing no reason to object to this, Alex nodded, indicating he would listen.

"Alright, we should probably start from the basics. My name is Celeron, and yours is Raddis. We're from a race beyond this solar system known as the Saiyans. Our people populated our former homeworld, Planet Vegeta, a millenia ago because our original homeworld, Planet Sadala, became uninhabitable. For centuries we lived side by side another race called the Tuffles, but a war between our races erupted on the planet, and we ended up as the victors. Ours was a warrior race, but some of our people were able to adapt the Tuffle's advanced technology and made it our own, thus making a minority of us technologically savvy and thus in charge of our technological knowhow. The image you see before you is adapted Tuffle technology. In the years after the war with the Tuffles, our leader, King Vegeta, saw fit to ally our planet with the villain known as Frieza, leader of the Ice Jin, and head of the Frieza Force. We became a tributary of Frieza, conquering planets on his behalf and expanding our reign across our home galaxy."

Here the newly revealed Saiyan paused for a moment to gather his thoughts, no doubt as what would come next in his story would be difficult. He continued: "Some of us on the council advising King Vegeta, myself included, were of the opinion that the King's policy of placating Frieza and doing his bidding would lead to our destruction, as it ultimately did. We were outnumbered, however, by the faction led by the King's son and our military leader, Prince Vegeta. He argued that our interests laid in perpetual conquest of our neighbors, and that these instincts could only be placated by our alliance with Frieza. The tech guild advising the King came to the conclusion that, if our planet stayed the same political course, we would either be destroyed by Frieza or one of our more competent neighbors would muster an alliance to contain our expansionism. I tried to convince the King to end our alliance with Frieza and stop our expansion into our galaxy and focus on diplomatically ensuring our hegemony within it. Prince Vegeta and King Vegeta wouldn't have any of it. Before that meeting I and your mother had made preparations to send you, our one and only son, to another planet on the space pod you undoubtedly found, so that you could survive the oncoming onslaught by Frieza. I received word that day that I would be arrested by the Royal Guard for treason against the Crown that very same night, the night the guild predicted would be our planet's last. Your mother and I pushed up our deadline, and we were able to send you off right before the planet's destruction that very same night, but not before they…they…"

Here Alex's biological father stopped momentarily, the memory of that night still fresh on his mind. It took him several minutes to continue, but when he did, he had a renewed vigor about him, as if the answer to his trauma lay in front of him. "Prince Vegeta's men killed your mother when she tried to stop them taking you. It was then I sent you on the space pod you found and sent you to this planet, but not before Frieza destroyed ours", his biological father finished.

Alex was shocked, shocked at the amount of information he had just encountered in one night. From the many questions swirling in his head, he chose the most glaring one. "Why?," croaked out. "Why are you telling me this now? Why didn't I find this out sooner?," he finished. For years he had wanted answers to the many dissimilarities he had with other children his age, and these differences caused him to grow up a very lonely childhood. He would have many sleepless nights after he would broach the topic to his parents, after which they would quickly change the subject, or blame it on a heretofore unknown developmental issue. It was all incredibly frustrating. But now, having all the answers at his disposal, he felt a sense of great loss. Today was not his day.

"Because I need you to conduct our planet's final mission, so to speak. I need you to train yourself in the use of your Saiyan abilities to defeat the ones who brought our planet and family to ruin, Prince Vegeta and Emperor Frieza," stated his father with conviction.

Alex was speechless. Here this man was, explaining the reasons behind why his life hadn't been typical of an eleven year old boy and the crazy abilities he had manifested three days ago, and now this man wanted him to use them to eliminate enemies he had only just learned about and to avenge a mother he had just been told existed. He wanted everything to stop, yet his rational side knew that was not a possibility since the moment he opened the space pod. A whirlwind of emotions threatened to overwhelm him, almost choking him with their intensity, yet he forced himself to at least try to remain calm and absorb the information. Coming to his senses, he noticed a feature of his vengeful father's anatomy he had failed to notice until now.

"Why do you have a tail?", Alex asked, pointing at the appendage surrounding his newly revealed father's waist like a belt. It was a strange thing, for a man to have a tail. It served to reinforce the extraterrestrial character of this encounter. Perhaps it was a remnant of Planet Vegeta's evolutionary history? Alex's thoughts were broken when Celeron answered him. "This", he said, unfurling said appendage around him, "is my tail", he concluded. "All Saiyans are born with a tail that symbolizes their potential to become Great Apes", he said. "Great Apes?", Alex asked. "Yes, you can think of it as our specie's ultimate battle form," said Celeron. "More information will be available in the now decrypted archives on your pod", Celeron finished.

"But why don't I have a tail?", pressed Alex. Here his father completely tensed, the memory of that night and its humiliation replaying itself in his mind's eye. After a long time, he answered: "That bastard Prince Vegeta…cut it off." Celeron's gaze shifted to an unknown corner of the room. "Our time runs short", Celeron concluded. "Remember, train yourself to destroy Vegeta and Frieza. Avenge our pride!", his father stated, after which he began to flicker away. Alex was left with more questions than answers from this encounter, and he suspected this meeting was just the tip of the proverbial iceberg as he slowly faded into consciousness.

Little did he know, how much the universe would concur with that sentiment.


	4. A Fateful Meeting

Saiyan Castaway

By MorePlus

"" Dialogue

'' Thoughts

" _Italics"_ other language

' _Italics'_ -thoughts in other language

 **Authors Note: Here's the next chapter, this one will establish Alex's path towards becoming a hero. After this one there will be a time skip to the start of the Young Justice series, and his first meeting with the Team.**

The entire week since the incident in the cabin flew by without much fanfare. For three days since returning to Gotham Alex and his adoptive parents did not speak about the strange trance he found himself in after messing with the now identified Saiyan pod he came to this planet in. In a way it was nice, almost as if the whole thing about being an extraterrestrial being from a warrior race in civil strife did not sink into their daily lives. Alex found comfort in this blissful state, but knew in the back of his mind the events of three days prior had to be discussed by his family at some point. That day came when his father, after coming home from a particularly taxing night on call at the hospital, cleared his throat as his son was finishing up dinner.

"Alejandro, we need to talk". Alex tensed: he knew that the topic of the conversation would be difficult, given that he had recounted the events of the luminescent box after it had happened. He knew it would not be an easy conversation. "First of, I want you to know that, despite all that happened three days ago, I and your mother have, and will always love you as if you were our own son," his "father" started. "That being said, if what this 'Celeron' said is true, you seem to be in danger because of your lineage. From what you told me, these 'Vegeta' and 'Frieza' persons sound like dangerous people. We need to find a way for you to be safe from them."

"My birth father mentioned something about training myself in my Saiyan abilities. I've been reading the archives I took from the pod: that weird energy I emitted at school was something called 'Ki'. Apparently, Saiyan abilities are based on the manipulation of ki, which is our life force. Everyone apparently has it, but the way it manifests in Saiyans allows them to do amazing things, like fire energy blasts and power up our attacks. They're measured by what are called 'power levels', and Saiyans use scouters like these to measure them." At this, Alex showed his adoptive father the green tinted scouter he found on the space pod. While his father was examining it, he continued: "I don't know of anyone on Earth who could train me in my abilities though, most people on Earth don't seem to manifest enough ki to really be effective in combat. I suppose I could begin searching, but it looks like an uphill battle. But I know that I'll have to master them before Frieza or Vegeta show up."

"Do you know when they're coming, from your time in the 'trance', Alex's father asked. "No, Celeron didn't mention a time frame. He suggested I should start as soon as possible." His adoptive father sighed, and lamented the situation: "They never prepare parents to deal with _meta_ children. I'll try to see what I can find out from my friend at the University, but I can't promise anything. Anyway, I think it's about time you go to sleep, you have school tomorrow."

Alex realized how tired he was from the whole ordeal of finding out his origins, and he felt relief when, after bidding his father farewell, he felt the impact of his body on his soft bed. Thoughts rushed through his head, mostly about his uncertain future. He lamented the fact that he had no one to train him in his abilities so he could confront the threat caused by his origins. Contrary to what Celeron stated, his main reason for attempting this was so he could protect his family from the threat Vegeta and Frieza represented. He would need a trainer. 'Maybe someone from the Justice League can help, they seem to know a lot about aliens.' Such contemplations were quickly dashed by his mind when he realized that the optics of the situation did not suit him revealing himself, at least not yet. A kid from a warrior race from a galaxy far away with a penchant for conquest? The Justice League would probably assume that he was the advance scout for another invasion like the one they stopped a month ago. No, he needed to try to master his abilities so he could at least prove himself to them when the time comes. With that issue resolved in his mind, for now, he drifted into a dreamless sleep.

Unbeknownst to Alex and his family, a certain deity was watching him ever since the incident in the cabin. "You're right kid, no one on Earth can handle the ki necessary to train a Saiyan. Luckily for you, I'm not exactly a 'resident', hehehehe," stated the chubby figure on a far-away planet, looking at the scene from a portal. For King Kai, this Alex character would present both a challenge and an opportunity. The kid just needed a nudge in the right direction so he could grow to his potential. And he would need that potential on his side if Kai wanted to bring balance to his quadrant of the universe from what would surely be the very unbalancing forces of Frieza and Vegeta. "Looks like I'm heading to Gotham. I'll need a disguise though"

The next day Alex made his way to Gotham North Middle School after being dropped by the bus. He thought about his dilemma as the sight of the school's gate made itself known in his vision. 'Maybe there are other Saiyans that can teach me. Vegeta and I can't surely be the only ones left.' His thoughts were interrupted by his friend Robert making his presence known. "Yo, Earth to Alex. What has you so bummed? Ever since you came back to school you've been out of it."

"Nothing. I just didn't get enough sleep last night." Not a total lie, as Alex was up a considerable time thinking about his dilemma. Considering the attention his lack of focus was attracting, he thought he'd tone it down a bit, for his friend's sake at least. "I'll get over it, what's with you? You seem to be excited about something," Alex asked his friend. "Don't you know, we're getting a new P.E. teacher today! I hope he's more chill than Mr. D'avila. He was a total slave driver!" His friend's excitement was palpable, and Alex could not help be affected by it. Perhaps a new teacher in school would liven the usually dour mood at Gotham North. It would certainly serve as a bit of a distraction from his current woes.

The morning passes by quickly in a cacophony of boredom. Endless monologues by equally boring teachers pass on without making much of an impression on Alex. The morning would have been unmemorable, save for that one instant when Alex was called upon to translate a particularly difficult passage (for the other students at least) in his Spanish elective class.

"! _Oh envidia, raíz de infinitos males y carcoma de las virtudes!",_ Alex recited. "It means, 'Oh envy, root of infinite evils and decay of the virtues'", Alex explained.

"Nerd!", one of the kids in the class whispered to his cohort. That set off a whole cacophony of laughter at Alex's expense. Looking around the room, Alex immediately shrank back to his seat so as to, unsuccessfully, avoid the embarrassment. It was an established fact that Alex was not the most popular kid in school due to his shy, quiet nature and his contemplative, studious ways, whereas most kids his age were loud and boisterous. His shy and reclusive nature made sure that he only had a handful of friends he could count on, Robert being the most recurring one. The rest of his interactions consisted mainly of a typical middle school student's casual acquaintances. All in all, it was quite a lonely life for Alex.

'Typical, maybe next period won't be as tough.' Such thoughts were in Alex's mind as he made his way to his next period-gym-right before the lunchbreak. The corridors of Gotham North Middle School blurred into a single image as he and Robert walked to the school's gym.

"I heard the new teacher is ex-Special Forces and knows all kinds of fighting techniques," Robert gushed. Robert was one to let his mind wander into fantasy about the implications of possibilities such as these. In his mind, he had conjured up a whole movie about how the newly introduced teacher would train him to defeat the bullies (and maybe get a few girls to like him). Alex's mind was on more practical things, like the possibility of this teacher not being as much of a jerk as the last one. Such were their thought patterns as the boys made their way towards the gym's entrance.

Once inside and having changed into gym clothes, Alex and Robert saw that the students that had arrived were lined up in a perfect line across from a slightly portly middle aged man wearing a track suit. What struck Alex the most about the man was his hair: It almost appeared as if the man had two antennae sprouting from his hair, but upon further inspection, they seemed to just be eccentric cowlicks. His facial hair was weird as well, sporting two protruding whisker-like extensions to his mustache. His skin was also very pale, almost a blue color if the light caught it correctly.

"Class, it's an honor to be your teacher. I understand I have some big shoes to fill because of the loss of Mr. D'avila." At this most of the class snorted in derision. "Anyway," continued the whiskered replacement, "My name is Mr. King. I'll be your gym teacher from now on. I'll throw a lot at you, but come the end of the school year you'll be glad I whipped you all into shape."

What followed was perhaps one of the most interesting physical education classes the students had ever experienced. It started off with a variety of meditation exercises, all of them involving breathing in controlled rythms from what Mr. King referred as an "Eastern technique". Then came a series of martial arts katas. Most of the students, not accustomed to such moves, labored to understand the new exercises. Alex, however, after a period of adjustment, found that the katas were quite enjoyable to do and learning them came naturally to him. 'Wonder why that is' he thought.

After a series of fast paced katas, Mr. King adjourned the class and sent the students off to lunch. Alex, having forgotten his backpack in the locker room after showering, excused himself from his friend and went back for his belongings. On his way he could not help but think about his predicament: he still needed a trainer in the art of ki manipulation if he hoped to have any chance of confronting the dangers posed by his origins. The task seemed impossible, and it did not seem like a few learned katas would help him in his endeavor. "This is fine and all, but I need more than some martial arts moves, I need training," Alex lamented.

"Perhaps I can be of help, young man." A voice at the end of the locker room caught Alex's attention, making him whip his head towards the person. "Mr. King? How exactly can you help me?" Alex was on guard: he had not told anyone at school of his otherworldly problem, and he had no intention to. This represented a new development, and it was worrying. For all he knew anyone expressing an interest in his condition could probably be working for Vegeta or Frieza.

"Now before you assume anything: no, I'm not with Vegeta or that madman Frieza. Quite the opposite actually." "How did you-", Alex was cut off by Mr. King's next words. "Now, as to how I know your secret, I'm what's known as a _Kai_ or Boundary King, in charge of a whole section of the universe, specifically the northern part of this quadrant. I came to you because I know what happened on Planet Vegeta. And I know your predicament, you need someone Ki-sensitive to train you in your Saiyan abilities."

"How-what-ok…assuming that you're telling the truth, how can I be sure of what you're telling me?" Alex did not know whether things like Boundary Beings existed, but considering that he came from a world where people flew around in tights and had amazing abilities, he did not rule out Mr. King's-or whoever he was- explanation. He needed proof, however, and he wasn't going to bet on this new development without it.

Mr. King held out his hand and, after making sure the locker room was deserted, a ball of yellow energy materialized in his hand. Alex was amazed that it seemed to be the same color as the eye beams he shot out weeks ago. The truth of Mr. King's statement impressing itself in Alex's mind, Mr. King dissipated the ball of energy just as quickly as it began. There was an awkward silence between them, broken only when Alex asked the following questions: "So what happens now? When do we start training? And how long will it take?"

Mr. King answered in a sober manner. "We start by ascertaining your power level. We start as soon as you tell your parents you found a trainer. It'll take a couple of years to get you ready to face your enemies, so we better start now. Now I believe lunch is almost over."

"Ok Mr. King. Where do we start?" Alex asked.

"I'll let you know. And call me _King Kai_."

Little did Alex know that the next few years would be the most intense training of his life.


End file.
